1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the mining of materials, preferably elemental metallic materials, compounds of metals or both or the like, from a natural body of water containing such materials. More particularly, the present invention relates to electrodeposition of such materials from natural bodies of moving water by use of energy substantially derived from naturally occurring proximate energy sources.
2. Introductory Discussion
Land surface mining operations and techniques supply the vast majority of the various metallic ores and elemental chemical substances. However, current circumstances have led to some major problems associated with land mining operations. Ecological problems such as air pollution from smelter operations, water or stream pollution from mine tailings and land surface disfigurations from strip mining and the like have become significant factors in inhibiting or restricting use of some surface mining techniques. The increasing costs of conventional sources of energy necessary to operate typical land surface mines and extractive metallurgy processes have resulted in decreased profitability and termination of operation of some mining operations. Lastly, the supply of some metallic materials is not unlimited, and eventually, the land surface supplies of these materials will approach serious levels of depletion.
An estimated 350 million cubic miles of ocean water covers much of the earth's surface. The oceans have been termed the world's largest ore bodies. It is recognized that many materials, including a wide variety of elemental metallic materials, are known to exist in huge quantities, but in very low concentrations, in the oceans. Economic recovery of these metals has been questionable because of the very low concentration and because of the relatively high costs of extracting these metals. Evidence of the concentration and existence of many valuable minerals and other metallic materials in the ocean water is seen from the existence of well-known nodules typically formed on the ocean floor. The value of actively devising mining systems for recovering commercial quantities of mineral rich material from these nodules has been recognized, and efforts are currently underway to perfect such recovery techniques.
The exact phenomena of nature by which the concentrations of minerals and materials from the ocean water occurs is not exactly known, but observations have shown that the process is extremely slow. The use of small electrical currents can accelerate the precipitation and collection of these materials, and in effect, grow a mineral-rich deposit possessing worthwhile value. However, the rate of material deposited is not great enough to economically justify a commercial mining operation in which sea water is processed with commercially purchased energy. There is at present very little use of the low level energy resources which exist so abundantly.
It is from these considerations and others that the present invention has evolved. It is generally proposed by the present invention that deposits of mineral-rich material can be obtained from natural bodies of water, such as the ocean water, in an economically rewarding and feasible manner.
3. Brief Description of Prior Art
Although the present invention exhibits significantly new and improved concepts, the prior art comprises certain knowledge which is of relevance or of interest with respect to the present invention. For example, it is known in the art to utilize electrodeposition or electrowinning techniques in mining various ores contained within an electrolytic slurry. Electrodeposition techiques have also been utilized to recover minerals and metals in situ from ore bodies beneath the earth's surface, and to recover these materials from the ocean floor or from the naturally occurring nodules found on the ocean floor. Certain features of the present invention relate to the induction of an electromagnetic force as a result of water moving through a magnetic field. This concept has been recognized in science. Limitations and considerations other than those briefly discussed here may be known in the prior art. However, the present invention represents significant advancements over the prior art.